Early Childhood Development Agency
{{short description|Autonomous Agency in Singapore}}
{{Infobox government agency
| agency_name = Early Childhood Development Agency
| logo = Early Childhood Development Agency logo.png
| logo_width =
| logo_caption = Logo of the Early Childhood Development Agency
| formed = {{Start date and age|df=yes|2013|04|01}}
| preceding1 =
| dissolved =
| superseding =
| jurisdiction = Government of Singapore
| employees =
| budget =
| headquarters = 51 Cuppage Road, #08-01, Singapore 229469
| chief1_position = Chief Executive Officer
| parent_agency = Ministry of Social and Family Development
Ministry of Education
| website = {{URL|www.ecda.gov.sg}}
| footnotes =
}}
The Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA; {{langx|ms|Agensi Pembangunan Awal Kanak-kanak}}; {{lang-zh|幼儿培育署}}; {{langx|ta|ஆரம்பகால பாலர்பருவ மேம்பாட்டு வாரியம்}}) is an autonomous government agency of the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) that manages the early childhood education sector such as overseeing the development of childcare centres and kindergartens in Singapore. The agency is jointly overseen by the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) and Ministry of Education (MOE).
History
The idea of having an agency for early childhood was first proposed during the 2012 National Day Rally by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong as a statutory board, being part of a plan to raise early childhood education standards in Singapore.{{cite web |title=National Day Rally 2012 |url=https://www.pmo.gov.sg/Newsroom/prime-minister-lee-hsien-loongs-national-day-rally-2012-speech-english |website=Prime Minister's Office (Singapore) |accessdate=27 March 2020 |date=26 August 2012 |quote=First of all, we will establish a new statutory board to oversee preschool education.}} Before the agency was formed, kindergartens and childcare centres were managed by the Ministry of Education's Pre-school Education Branch and Ministry of Social and Family Development's Child Care Division respectively.
Following the announcement, the agency was formed on 1 April 2013.{{cite web |title=Launch of The Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) |url=https://www.moe.gov.sg/news/press-releases/launch-of-the-early-childhood-development-agency-ecda |website=MOE |accessdate=20 September 2019 |date=27 March 2013}}
Overview
The agency's mission is "To Ensure Every Child Has Access To Affordable And Quality Early Childhood Development Services And Programmes", where the early childhood sector is of good quality and has good educators for each child. It mainly focuses on children under the age of 7.{{cite web |title=About Us |url=https://www.ecda.gov.sg/pages/aboutus.aspx |website=ECDA |accessdate=27 March 2020}}
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.ecda.gov.sg Early Childhood Development Agency]
{{Government of Singapore}}
Category:2013 establishments in Singapore
Category:Early childhood educational organizations
Category:Education in Singapore